Badminton Rules

Badminton is a sport that has been around since the 16th century. The sport is
played indoors and the pinnacle comes from its Olympic events. The sport is very
popular in Asian countries such as China and India with these countries leading the way
by producing some of the world’s best players.

Object of the Game

The object of badminton is to hit the shuttlecock over the net and have it land in the
designated court areas. If your opponent manages to return the shuttlecock then a rally
occurs. If you win this rally i.e. force your opponent to hit the shuttlecock out or into the
net then you win a point. You are required to win 21 points to win a set with most
matches being best of 3 sets. Points can be won on either serve.

Players & Equipment

There are two forms of badminton, singles and doubles (it’s also possible to play mixed
doubles). Each player is allowed to use a stringed racket (similar to a tennis racket but
with the head being smaller) and a shuttlecock. The shuttlecock is made up of half
round ball at the bottom and a feather like material surrounding the top. You can only
really hit the bottom of the shuttlecock and as gravity comes into play will always revert
the ball side facing down. You may only hit the shuttlecock once before it either hits the
ground or goes over the net.

The court measures 6.1m wide and 13.4m long. Across the middle of the rectangular
court is a net which runs at 1.55m. Running along each side of the court are two tram
lines. The inside lines are used as the parameter for singles match whilst the outside
line is used for a doubles match.

Scoring
A point is scored when you successfully hit the shuttlecock over the net and land it in
your opponent’s court before they hit it. A point can also be gained when your opponent
hits the shuttlecock into either the net or outside the parameters.

Winning the Game

To win a game you must reach 21 points before your opponent. If you do so then you
will have won that set. If the scores are tied at 20-20 then it comes down to whichever
player manages to get two clear points ahead. If the points are still tied at 29-29 then
the next point will decide the winner of the set. Winning the overall game will require you
to win 2 out of the 3 sets played.

Rules of Badminton

● A game can take place with either two (singles) or four (doubles) players.
● An official match has to be played indoors on the proper court dimensions. The
dimensions are 6.1m by 13.4m, The net is situated through the middle of the
court and is set at 1.55m.
● To score a point the shuttlecock must hit within the parameters of the opponents
court.
● If the shuttlecock hits the net or lands out then a point is awarded to your
opponent.
● Players must serve diagonally across the net to their opponent. As points are
won then serving stations move from one side to the other. There are no second
serves so if your first serve goes out then your opponent wins the point.
● A serve must be hit underarm and below the servers waist. No overarm serves
are allowed.
● Each game will start with a toss to determine which player will serve first and
which side of the court the opponent would like to start from.
● Once the shuttlecock is ‘live’ then a player may move around the court as they
wish. They are permitted to hit the shuttlecock from out of the playing area.
● If a player touches the net with any part of their body or racket then it is deemed
a fault and their opponent receives the point.
● A fault is also called if a player deliberately distracts their opponent, the
shuttlecock is caught in the racket then flung, the shuttlecock is hit twice or if the
player continues to infract with the laws of badminton.
 ● Each game is umpired by a referee on a high chair who overlooks the game.
There are also line judges who monitor if the shuttlecock lands in or not. The
referee has overriding calls on infringements and faults.
● Let may be called by the referee if an unforeseen or accidental circumstance
arose. These may include the shuttlecock getting stuck in the bet, server serving
out of turn, one player was not ready or a decision which is too close to call.
● The game has only two rest periods coming the form of a 90 second rest after
the first game and a 5 minute rest period after the second game.
● If the laws are continuously broken by a player then the referee holds the power
to dock that player of points with persisting fouls receiving a forfeit of the set or
even the match.

What are all those lines for? 

When you first look at a badminton court, you could be forgiven for thinking it
has too many lines. This is mainly because the court is marked up for both
singles and doubles, which use slightly different court sizes.

The outermost lines form the doubles court. So in a doubles rally, the shuttle is
allowed to land anywhere on the court.

The singles court is slightly narrower than the doubles court. The singles side
lines are not the outermost lines, but the next ones in. Taken together with the
outermost (doubles) side lines, these make narrow alley shapes along the sides
of the court. These alleys are often called the ​tramlines​or ​side tramlines,​ since
they look like tram or train tracks.

So here’s another way to think about it: the side tramlines are ​in for doubles,
but ​out​ for singles.

All the other lines are for serving 

There are still three lines we haven’t discussed yet. These lines mean nothing
during the main rally, and only apply when you’re serving. This is similar to how
a tennis court has special lines for serving.

Serving 
Serving is how you start the rally: someone has to hit the shuttle first! To
prevent the server gaining an overwhelming advantage, there are special
restrictions placed on serving that don’t apply during the rest of the rally.

The ​receiver is the person who hits the second shot in the rally. In doubles, the
receiver’s partner is not allowed to hit this shot.

How to serve 

In badminton, the serve must be hit in an upwards direction, with an underarm

hitting action. You are not allowed to play a tennis style serve.

The main rule here is that when you hit the shuttle, it must be below your
waist. To be exact, the rules define this to be a height level with the lowest part
of your ribcage. In other words, you can serve from a bit higher than the top of
your shorts, but not much.

Service courts 

The service courts are smaller box shapes inside the court. We’ll look at what
they are used for in a moment, but first let’s get the right boxes.
Notice that the badminton court has a line down the middle, extending from the
back to near the net; this is the ​centre line​. At the front of the court, the centre
line is met by another line; this is the front service line. These two lines form a
T shape where they meet.

A singles service court is a box made from four lines:

● The centre line

● A singles side line (inside side line)
● The front service line
● The back line (the outside one, all the way at the back)

On your side of the net, you have two service courts: your right service court,
and your left service court. The same is true for your opponent.

The doubles service courts are slightly different. They are wider, because they
use the outside side line (remember: the doubles court is wider); and they are
shorter, because they use the inside back line.

That’s what the inside back line is for: doubles service, and nothing else. It’s
probably the most confusing line on a badminton court, because that’s all it
does!

So just to be clear, a doubles service court is made from these four lines:

● The centre line

● A ​doubles​ side line (outside side line)
● The front service line
● The ​inside​ back line (not the very back line, but the next one in)
How service courts are used 

Service courts are used for three things:

● The server must stand inside a service court.

● The receiver must stand inside the diagonally opposite service
court.
● The serve must travel into the diagonally opposite service court.

For example, suppose the server is standing in his left service court. The
receiver will be standing in ​his left service court, which is also where the serve
has to go.

If the serve is going to land outside the service court, then the receiver should
let it fall to the floor. If the receiver hits the serve, then the rally continues even
if the serve had been going ​out.​

The server and receiver must stay inside their service boxes until the server
contacts the shuttle with his racket. After that, they can leave the boxes
immediately and move anywhere on court.

Service faults 
Badminton has several rules about serving, most of which are meant to limit the
advantage that can be gained from a serve.

In club badminton play, disputes over the legality of serves are common. It
helps to know the rules before you argue over them!
With the exception of delays, breaking any of the following rules is a ​fault​. In
the case of delays, the umpire will normally warn the players first. If the players
continue to delay, then the umpire would usually call a fault.

Definitions 
9.2

Once the players are ready for the service, the first forward movement of the
server’s racket head shall be the start of the service.

9.3

Once started, the service is delivered when the shuttle is hit by the server’s
racket or, in attempting to serve, the server misses the shuttle.

These rules define when the service starts, and when it is delivered. These
definitions get used in some of the rules below.

Delays 
9.1.1

Neither side shall cause undue delay to the delivery of the service once the
server and the receiver are ready for the service. On completion of the
backward movement of the server’s racket head, any delay in the start of the
service (Law 9.2) shall be considered an undue delay.
This is really two rules rolled into one. First, you cannot hold your serve
indefinitely, hoping that the receiver will lose concentration or become
uncomfortable. Similarly, the receiver cannot delay indefinitely.

How long is an undue delay? The rules don’t say, because it’s left to the
umpire’s discretion. In club play, you just have to be reasonable. I suggest you
should not take more than five seconds to serve (once ready).

The second part of the rule is a convoluted way of saying something quite
simple: when serving, you cannot pause between backswing and forwards
swing. Many club players use this pause to upset the receiver’s timing. That is
against the rules: it’s a fault.

You might be sceptical about my interpretation here, but I am following official

guidance from ​Badminton England​. If you pause between backswing and
forwards swing when serving, you’re breaking the rules.

Of course, you don’t have to keep the same ​speed of swing, and you can also
serve without using a backswing at all.

Note that this rule also forbids an extremely slow serving action, because that
would constitute an ​undue delay​.

Where the server and receiver must stand 

9.1.2

The server and receiver shall stand within diagonally opposite service courts,
without touching the boundary lines of these service courts.
You’re not allowed to put your feet on the lines, when serving or receiving. Note
that this rule is only about ​touching the lines: you may lean forwards or
sideways so that your racket is outside the service court.

Keep both feet on the ground 

9.1.3

Some part of both feet of the server and the receiver shall remain in contact
with the surface of the court in a stationary position from the start of the serve
(Law 9.2) until the service is delivered (Law 9.3).

Both feet must stay on the ground until the server contacts the shuttle. Only
some part of each foot has to stay on the ground; this allows you to shift your
weight and even turn your body (as in a forehand high serve).

You may not drag a foot along the floor, however.

Hit the base of the shuttle first 

9.1.4

The server’s racket shall initially hit the base of the shuttle.

This rule seems incongruous unless you know its history. It was introduced to
prevent players using a particular style of low serve. The serve was called the
Sidek serve or ​S-serve​, after the Sidek brothers who popularised it in the
1980s. It was mainly used as a backhand serve.

The S-serve involved slicing sideways across the feathers of an inverted shuttle,
making it spin chaotically so that the receiver had difficulty controlling his
return. The S-serve was so effective that many people felt it was ruining the
game; eventually, the serve was banned by introducing rule 9.1.4 (above).

Tournament video footage of the S-serve is hard to find, but here’s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvldP5KCobw>one example where both
sides are mainly using S-serves (a good example is at 7:41). Note the wild,
downwards-swerving path of many serves. The receivers make a large number
of errors, and rarely succeed in attacking the S-serves.

Although the S-serve is against the rules, other spinning serves are not. You
may still slice the serve, and you may even hit the feathers, providing you hit
the base first. These techniques may cause the shuttle to spin, wobble, or
swerve, although the effect is far less dramatic than an S-serve.

Serve from below the waist 

9.1.5

The whole shuttle shall be below the server’s waist at the instant of being hit by
the server’s racket. The waist shall be considered an imaginary line round the
body, level with the lowest part of the server’s bottom rib.

This is an important rule: it’s the one that prevents you from playing a smash
as your serve!

Note that the waist is not the same as the line of your shorts: it’s actually the
lowest part of your ribcage. To judge how high you can serve from, feel for your
lowest rib: the shuttle has to be below this.

The angle of the server’s racket 

9.1.6

The shaft of the server’s racket at the instant of hitting the shuttle shall be
pointing in a downward direction.

At first, this seems an unnecessary rule. We already have rule 9.1.5 to enforce
a height limit; why do we need another one?

This rule is useful because it prevents players from applying heavy top-spin to
their drive serves. These serves travel fast and flat, and can actually swerve
downwards after passing the net so that they reach the receiver below net
height. They are almost impossible to attack.

Drive serves can be perfectly legal, but this rule ensures that all legal drive
serves will travel upwards as they pass the net — making them vulnerable to
attack by an alert receiver.

No stop-start serving 
9.1.7

The movement of the server’s racket shall continue forwards from the start of
the service (Law 9.2) until the service is delivered (Law 9.3).

Many servers like to shake their racket back-and-forth behind the shuttle, as an
attempt to disturb the receiver’s timing. That is a fault.

This rule, together with rule 9.1.1, ensures that the service action must be one
continuous movement with no double-action feints. To be precise, you are
allowed to serve with either of these actions:
 ● One​ backswing immediately followed by ​one​ forwards swing
● One​ forwards swing on its own (no backswing)

Where you have to serve 

9.1.8

The flight of the shuttle shall be upwards from the server’s racket to pass over
the net so that, if not intercepted, it shall land in the receiver’s service court
(i.e. on or within the boundary lines).

A serve that hits the line is ​in.​

The rule ​appears to suggest that, even if the receiver hits it back, a serve that
was travelling ​outs
​ hould be faulted. ​That is a misinterpretation of the rule​:
notice that the rule says shall land, not would land!

So the rule is technically correct, but it’s still badly worded.

Some silly stuff: even if you were three metres tall and could hit a serve
downwards, it would still be against the rules, because the serve must travel
upwards. You also are not allowed to use some sneaky trick serve that swerves
around the sides of the net posts!

No second chances 
9.1.9

In attempting to serve, the server shall not miss the shuttle.

If you miss the shuttle on serving, you lose the rally. I recommend practising
your serve more.

Although it’s not explicitly mentioned anywhere in the rules, you also don’t get a
second serve. This is different from tennis, where the server gets two attempts
to put the ball inside the service court.

Faults during the rally 

Hitting the shuttle to the wrong place 

13.3

[It shall be a fault] if in play, the shuttle:

13.3.1

lands outside the boundaries of the court (i.e. not on or within the boundary
lines);

13.3.2

passes through or under the net;

13.3.3

fails to pass over the net;

These are fairly obvious. Your shot must travel over the net, not underneath,
around, or through it; and it must land inside your opponent’s court (unless he
hits it back).

If the shuttle lands on the line, it’s ​in​.

Only the first contact between the shuttle and the floor counts. Shuttles often
hit the line and then bounce out; this counts as ​in.​

When  the  shuttle  touches  something  before  reaching 

the floor 
13.3

[It shall be a fault] if in play, the shuttle:

13.3.4

touches the ceiling or side walls;

13.3.5

touches the person or dress of a player;

13.3.6

touches any other object or person outside the court;

(Where necessary on account of the structure of the building, the local

badminton authority may, subject to the right of veto of its Member Association,
make bye-laws dealing with cases in which a shuttle touches an obstruction.)
You lose the rallly if you hit the shuttle into the ceiling or walls. You also lose
the rally if the shuttle touches you or your clothing.

The last rule is just a stuffy way of acknowledging that many badminton courts
are not perfect. For example, many courts have beams or girders crossing low
above them. Most clubs decide to play a let when the shuttle hits a beam. This
is standard practice, and I recommend it.

You cannot claim a let for hitting the ceiling, however. Otherwise, whenever you
were losing the rally, you could just hit the shuttle up to the ceiling and start
again!

Surprisingly, the rules do not specify a minimum ceiling height. Playing

badminton with a low ceiling ruins the game, as it makes defensive shots
ineffective. In practice, all major tournaments use very high ceilings, but some
local or regional venues do not.

Double hits 
13.3

[It shall be a fault] if in play, the shuttle:

13.3.7

is caught and held on the racket and then slung during the execution of a
stroke;

13.3.8
is hit twice in succession by the same player. However, a shuttle hitting the
head and the stringed area of the racket in one stroke shall not be a fault;

13.3.9

is hit by a player and the player’s partner successively;

With a little practice, it’s possible to catch the shuttle with your racket, using a
scooping motion. For obvious reasons, you’re not allowed to do this during a
rally.

Similarly, you may not hit the shuttle twice, on your own or with a
partner — for example, first hitting it up above net height, and then smashing
it down!

Note that a bad contact is not a fault. Many players, especially older ones, call
no shot when they have made a bad contact — either hitting just the frame, or
hitting both the frame and the strings. This is not a fault, and the rally should
continue.

Hitting the net or invading the opponent’s court 

13.4

[It shall be a fault] if in play, a player:

13.4.1

touches the net or its support with racket, person or dress;

13.4.2
invades an opponent’s court over the net with racket or person except that the
striker may follow the shuttle over the net with the racket in the course of a
stroke after the initial point of contact with the shuttle is on the striker’s side of
the net;

13.4.3

invades an opponent’s court under the net with racket or person such that an
opponent is obstructed or distracted;

If you touch the net or the posts, you lose the rally. This commonly happens
with ​/articles/net-kills>net kills​: if the shuttle is tight to the net, it can be hard
to play a net kill without hitting the net with your racket.

You are not allowed to reach over the net to play your shot. Provided you make
contact with the shuttle on your side, however, your racket may then pass over
the net during your follow-through action.

It’s hard to be sure what the rules intend for edge cases, such as a tight
/articles/net-kills/technique/brush>brush net kill where the contact point is on
your side but the top of your racket is intruding (just slightly) over the net.
Even in officiated tournaments, these calls are made by eye, without the aid of
video replays or electronic sensors (although video replays are sometimes used
when the call is disputed). In practice, the court officials have a hard enough
time judging whether the contact point was okay. To spot these edge cases
accurately is beyond human ability.

In other words, I wouldn’t worry about it. Just make sure that you contact the
shuttle on your side.
When lunging forwards to retrieve a tight drop or net shot, players often put a
foot under the net. This is not a fault unless you obstruct or distract the
opponent — for example, by treading on his foot!

Obstructions and distractions 

13.4

[It shall be a fault] if in play, a player:

13.4.4

obstructs an opponent, i.e. prevents an opponent from making a legal stroke

where the shuttle is followed over the net;

13.4.5

deliberately distracts an opponent by any action such as shouting or making

gestures;

Remember that you are allowed to follow-through with your racket over the net,
providing you made contact on your side. If your opponent obstructs
this — such as putting his racket in the way so that you would be forced to hit
it — then you win the rally.

Note that your opponent is allowed to put his racket in the path of the shuttle.
He is ​not allowed to block your ​stroke​, but he ​is allowed to block your ​shot​.
It’s a subtle distinction: your ​stroke is the movement of your racket; your shot
is the movement of the shuttle.
Deliberate distractions are not allowed. There’s a fine line here: the rule does
not prohibit shouting (e.g. when you smash) or expressing yourself through
gestures (e.g. a clenched fist after winning a point); but it does prohibit using
these to distract your opponent.